Weekly MCU Spec: Spider-ManOne of the single biggest drivers of comic book speculation nowadays is the MCU.  From major characters like Spider-Man all the way down to D-listers like Frog Man, the MCU has fundamentally changed the way people look at comic books.  The goal of this article series is to provide investors of all stripes with some well-reasoned speculation opportunities so they can be one stop ahead of a constantly shifting marketplace. So for our inaugural issue, let's talk about Marvel's biggest and my favorite superhero: Spider-Man!

Spidey is widely known for his unique everyman charm, decades of incredible stories, and deep bench of interesting supporting characters and villains.  With so many options out there, it can be tough to figure out what might happen next for the character in the MCU or the corollary films produced by Sony.  Tough, but not impossible.  Here are some of the Spider-Man books I am interested in and the reasons why.

Low-Cost Options

Spidey #1

Weekly MCU Spec: Spider-Man

In November of 2021, Marvel Studios announced that they would be creating an animated Spider-Man series for Disney Plus called Spider-Man: Freshman Year.  Few details about the project have been released; we do know that the show will focus on Peter's early days as the webslinger and his struggles to balance this tremendous responsibility with all the struggles that come with making it to high school.

This is essentially the exact same premise as the twelve-issue series Spidey by Robbie Thompson and Nick Bradshaw.  Given the lack of additional information about the show and the incredible similarity of the premises, Spidey #1 represents a great low-cost, low-risk option for investors looking to get in early on the MCU's next Spider-Man project

Amazing Spider-Man #559

Weekly MCU Spec: Spider-Man

This book marks the very first appearance of Screwball, a social media-obsessed criminal who loves to live-stream her crimes.  Screwball has only existed for a short period of time but has already made a big impact.  She has made numerous appearances over the years in the comics and was a driving force behind the sidequests of the WILDLY popular Marvel's Spider-Man video game for the Playstation 4 (more on that later).

In today's day and age, social media is so prominent. A character fundamentally predicated on that prominence has a lot of appeal, especially when her first appearance can still be found for cover price.

Medium Cost Options

Amazing Spider-Man #685 Dell'Otto Variant

Weekly MCU Spec: Spider-Man

Despite being Spider-Man's very first villain, the Chameleon does not really have a lot of great comic book covers.  There are many reasons for this, including the character's comparatively infrequent use and his whole schtick being disguised.  That means that the few covers that do feature him have the benefit of scarcity working in their favor.  That is especially true for this incentive variant by the renowned artist Gabrielle Dell'Otto.

With a Kraven The Hunter film on the way and the enormous shared history between Kraven and the Chameleon (they are half brothers), it would not be at all surprising if the Chameleon showed up.  Were that to happen, owners of this particular variant could be in for a big payday.

Spider-Geddon #0 Negative Space Variant

When the news came out that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was going to feature close to 250 different characters, speculators rushed out to get their hands on comics featuring the first appearance of Spider characters.  One character that I feel many have overlooked is the version of Spider-Man from Marvel's Spider-Man.

The game was incredibly popular and including the character in a movie represents an incredible synergy for Sony.  Spider-Geddon #0 marks the first in-story appearance of the character and has a lot of different variants, including this particular cover from John Tyler Christopher.  Covers that make creative use of negative space are incredibly popular within the speculation community. This makes this particular variant a great investment; it is almost certain to hold its value regardless of the character showing up in a movie or not.

High-Cost Options

Spider-Men #1 Second Print

If you are like me, you believe that a live-action meeting between Peter Parker and Miles Morales is inevitable.  Given that assumption, investors should naturally be interested in the comic book where the two characters meet for the very first time.  Unfortunately, Spider-Men #1 had a massive print run, meaning the book has a lower value ceiling than it might otherwise have.

Fortunately, there is another option, one that a lot of people do not know about. The second print of the book!  This version can be readily identified by Peter and Miles both wearing their respective masks on the cover.  When these two characters do inevitably meet in live-action, the market will be flooded with copies of the first print. This makes it all the more important to own books like this that can distinguish themselves from the rest of the crowd.

What If? #105

This book contains the first appearance of May "Mayday" Parker, Peter and Mary Jane's daughter in an alternate timeline.  Mayday is one of the most beloved Spider characters of all time, a point most strongly evidenced by her 100-issue series Spider-Girl (Fun fact: Spider-Girl is the longest-running superhero book with a female lead character ever published by Marvel).

Few Spider characters can boast of having more stories, supporting cast members, or character development than Mayday. This makes her a great candidate for an eventual film or TV show adaptation.  I cannot recommend Mayday's stories highly enough; I strongly encourage anyone reading this to learn more about one of the greatest comic book characters out there.

Out of Nowhere Pick

Spider-Man: Fairy Tales #4

This book contains the first appearance of the Prince of Arachne, a medieval knight version of Spider-Man.  I wish I had a really smart reason for suggesting this one; in all honesty, I just feel like Knights are really cool and this character's distinct look would really pop on screen.  This book can sometimes be found in dollar bins, so there is really only upside here.

That's all for this week, folks!  Check back next week for a new MCU topic: Marvel Cosmic!

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*Any perceived investment advice is that of the freelance blogger and does not represent advice on behalf of GoCollect.